"Jenna & Luke" - Chapter 9

“Stop fussing, Jenna,” Luke admonished her. She was standing in front of the full length mirror in his bedroom, checking her appearance yet again.

“Are you really sure this is an appropriate ‘meet-your-parents’ outfit?”

“Very much so. You look amazing,” Luke said with a smile as he rolled over to her and pulled her down to sit in his lap. She buried her head in the crook of his neck and inhaled the scent of his aftershave and the scent of him. It instantly calmed her down; being close to Luke had that effect on her.

“Thanks. I’m just worried and nervous and I want to make a good first impression.”

“As I’ve told you several times, you’ve got nothing to worry about. My parents already adore you.”

“I hope you’re right,” Jenna sighed as the doorbell rang and she scooted off Luke’s lap after kissing him quickly on the lips.

….

An hour later Jenna did her best to have a good time in the company of Maryanne and Thomas Stevenson. She’d liked Luke’s dad almost immediately; he was an older version of his son, in both looks and personality. His mother was a tougher nut to crack and Jenna had a feeling she didn’t approve of her.

“So, Lucas told me you run your own business in the graphic design industry,” Maryanne queried when she got Jenna to herself. Luke and his dad were deeply engrossed in a conversation about football.

“I own half of it, the other half is owned by my business partner and college friend Sarah. She contacted me a while back and asked if I was interested in going into business with her here in LA. I studied arts at UCLA and I’d wanted to move back for a while, so when Sarah contacted me it just seemed like a perfect opportunity.”

“How’s business?”

“Slowly, but surely picking up. We had a slow start, but Sarah’s got lots of contacts and they’re finally starting to prove to be useful.”

“That’s good. So you’re financially independent I suppose?” Maryanne’s voice was suddenly a bit cold.

“Excuse me?” Jenna was confused; she didn’t get what Luke’s mom was getting at.

“Lucas has a good job and makes good money and he’s got money from when he was a football player. You’re not counting on him to provide for you while you’re trying to get your business going, are you?”

“What? No, absolutely not! I can provide for myself just fine. Luke and I don’t even live together.”

…

Luke was in the middle of a conversation with his dad, but when he heard Jenna’s voice rise he looked over at her and his mom. He noticed that his girlfriend seemed tense and upset. This can’t be good. I wonder what Mom has managed to say this time.

Luke excused himself from his dad and rolled over to where Jenna and his mom were seated opposite ends of the couch.

“Mom, what did you say to upset Jenna?” he asked in a no-nonsense tone.

“Nothing, we’re just chatting,” his mom replied. Jenna remained silent.

“Cut the crap, Mom. I know something is going on. Spill it.”

“I was just making sure Jenna isn’t taking advantage of you,” Maryanne said cooly.

“Mom! What the fuck? I’m a grown man and I don’t need you to look out for me like that. I’m perfectly capable of watching my own back.” He moved closer to Jenna and held out his left hand; she immediately laced her fingers with his curled ones, but he noticed she was still tense. Just as Maryanne was about to say something Thomas joined them.

“Lucas, that’s not a way to speak to your mother,” he scolded his son.

“When she accuses the woman I love of taking advantage of me it’s not only insulting to Jenna, it’s also insulting that she suggests that I’m not capable of looking out for myself and that there’s something wrong with my judgment.”

“You are in a more vulnerable position than most men, dear,” Maryanne said to Luke.

“Why? Because I’m crippled? The accident broke my neck, not my brain.”

“You know what I mean…” Maryanne insisted.

“No, Mom. I don’t. Yes, I’m very aware that I’m rather severely physically disabled, but mentally there’s nothing wrong with me; I have a Masters degree and I’m part of the management team at a large insurance company. I wouldn’t be doing that job if I were retarded too; there’s nothing wrong with my brain. I don’t have to take this shit, and neither does Jenna.”

A long, rather awkward silence followed. Luke didn’t budge and from the looks of it, neither were his parents. He closed his eyes and with a sigh he leaned his head against the headrest on his wheelchair. He wasn’t happy with the way things were going, but at the same time he wasn’t surprised; his mother had always been rather protective of her boys and after his injury the level of protectiveness had increased significantly. It was the main reason he’d decided to move to LA.

…

Jenna didn’t know what to do with the awkward silence that had fallen after Luke’s speech to his mom about not being retarded. He sat with his eyes closed and his head tipped back slightly, it rested against the headrest of his wheelchair. The expression on his face was neutral; unreadable. Their laced hands were resting on the armrest of his wheelchair.

His parents were seated next to each other on the couch; with their hands clasped together and their expressions as unreadable as their son’s.

Part of Jenna wanted to just get up and leave, but she didn’t want to give Luke’s mother the satisfaction of driving her away. And although she hadn’t had the courage to say it to Luke yet she knew she loved him. I love this man. He’s the best thing that has happened to me in a long time and even if he were dirt poor I’d want to be with him. It’s Luke I want, not his house or his money.

She lifted their entwined hands to her lips and kissed the back of Luke’s hand. He slowly opened his eyes and turned his head to look at her with a tentative smile on his face.  Jenna placed a kiss on his cheek before she turned to his parents.

“Maryanne, Thomas,” she said in a firm tone. When she was sure she had both their attention she carried on. “I love your son. He’s the best thing that had happened to me in a long time. I’m not going to lie; I found his disability a bit scary at first, but as I got to know him it faded into the background. He’s an amazing person. I want Luke. Not his house or his money. I want him. It’s a simple as that.”

“You love me?” Luke asked, sounding a bit surprised.

Jenna turned to him with a smile on her face and before she spoke she kissed him gently on the lips. As she pulled back she nodded. “Yes, Luke. I love you. I think part of me fell in love with you the day I met you. You’re the best thing that happened to me in a long time, Luke Hillbrook.”

“I love you too, Jenna. I’ve wanted to say that for a while, but I’ve felt it’s too soon. We haven’t been going out for that long.” Luke pulled Jenna into his lap and wrapped his right arm around her waist. “Mom, you owe Jenna an apology.”

Maryanne seemed rather shocked by the turn of events and she reluctantly apologized to Jenna, who in turn accepted it. She wasn’t convinced that Luke’s mom meant it, but she didn’t want to cause more tension.

…

Luke’s landline phone ringing on the nightstand woke them up Sunday morning. It was voice controlled and Luke answered the call groggily. It was Warwick, the PCA that was scheduled to come help Luke with his morning routine.

“Sorry man. There’s been a huge wreck and I’m stuck in traffic for God-knows-how long. I have no idea when I’ll be at your place.”

“It’s not your fault, Warwick. Just don’t stress about coming in today. I’ll manage.”

“But I thought you said Kevin is out of town? That he’s visiting family or something?”

“He is, but my parents are here. Mom knows my morning routine and my dad can deal with the heavy lifting.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll see you tonight.”

“Have a good day.”

“You too,” Luke said; then he ended the call. He noticed that Jenna was looking at him.

“I’ll help you with your morning routine. I don’t want your mom to think I’m not capable of it,” she said.

“Jenna… How many times do we have to discuss this?”

“I get that you don’t want me to be your caretaker. I’m your girlfriend and I love you. The thing is; when things like these happen and there’s no one else around I’d like to be able to help you get ready for the day. Just so you don’t have to call around and find someone else and be super delayed. And I really think it would make your mother see me in a different light.”

Luke closed his eyes and sighed. “I guess you have a point. Okay, if you’re sure you can deal with this I’ll try to talk you through it. I would’ve preferred to have Kevin teach you, but I’ll admit I’m not keen on asking my parents for help.”

…

“This is the tricky part,” Luke said to Jenna, she had helped him transfer back to the bed where she had somewhat awkwardly helped him with his range of motion exercises and now it was time to get him dressed.

“We’ve managed so far, I’m sure we can manage this too,” she replied confidently.

“On the bottom left shelf in my closet there are adult undergarments, grab one of those. On the shelf above there should be a basket with leg bags and holders for them. Grab one of each.”

“You mean…you wear diapers?” Jenna stuttered, not able to conceal that she was surprised. It was exactly the kind of awkward situation Luke had hoped to avoid.

“It’s just a safety measure. My bowel routine works very well, but unfortunately accidents happen sometimes and I prefer to soil a diaper and not my clothes and wheelchair cushion. It’s a very rare occurrence, but I feel it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“I see. That makes sense. It just caught me by surprise since I haven’t seen you wearing them.”

“I have pads on the bed at night, they do the trick.”

“Oh, right. I didn’t think about that.”

“If you’re not okay with this I’ll ask my folks to help me. Mom was my main PCA for the first year after I was discharged from rehab.”

“No! It’s fine. I was just surprised, that’s all. I’m craving breakfast, so lets get this over with. What do you want to wear?”

“Just some jeans and a t-shirt. Casual, since I’m not going to work today.”

…

Twenty minutes later Jenna had finished dressing Luke and she used the transfer board to get him into the wheelchair. After she’d strapped him in she fetched a pair of sneakers from the closet and put them on his feet. When she stood back up he was smiling at her.

“You’re amazing, Jenna. I love you and I’m so grateful I have you in my life.”

“Thank you, for teaching me and trusting me. I feel the same way about you.” Jenna kissed him soundly and then she excused herself to get dressed and ready for the day.

…

“How did you get ready this morning, Lucas? I didn’t hear a car in the drive,” his mom said, taking a sip of her coffee while Jenna and Luke worked together on preparing breakfast.

“Jenna helped me. Warwick was stuck in traffic because of a wreck.”

“Oh. I could have helped you.”

“True, but Jenna is fully capable of assisting me when something like that happens and Kevin isn’t around. He has been training her for a while.” It was an outright lie, but Jenna had managed well and he hoped learning that she was capable of assisting him would gain her some respect from his parents.

“Really? And you’re okay with that, Jenna?” Maryanne asked coldly.

“I’m happy to help Luke. I actually wish he’d accept more assistance from me, since it would give us more privacy, but he’s adamant that I’m his girlfriend and not his caretaker.”

“Really? You realize you’d better get used to having assistants around if you’re serious about your relationship with Lucas?”

“Oh, I don’t mind having the assistants around, I’ve gotten used to it. I’m sure it was harder for you,” Jenna looked at Luke and squeezed his shoulder before she carried on. “Than it is for me.”

Maryanne didn’t respond to Jenna and she and Luke turned their attention to preparing breakfast. Luke smiled warmly at Jenna and mouthed “Thank you.” Jenna winked at him and popped two more slices of bread into the toaster.

To be continued...